A MERSEYSIDE school has agreed to parents’ demands for a ballot over its plans to become an academy.

Maghull’s Deyes high school is one of seven in the borough considering converting to a centrally-funded academy, which would allow it to set its own curriculum and pay and conditions.

But angry parents demanded they have a proper say on the plans through a ballot – a call backed by Sefton council leader Peter Dowd.

Deyes high has now agreed to the request.

But today parents said they remained sceptical over the consultation, pointing out the voting form had dropped on doormats during the school holidays.

And despite a pledge in a covering letter that “we need as much factual information as possible to make an informed decision”, five pages of pro-academy literature does not contain a single reference to any negative implications conversion could have.

Parents have five options on the ballot form, to be returned by June 10.

They are: outright support of the academy plans; a willingness for governors “to make the decision”; an outright vote against; a call for the plans to be postponed; or “undecided.”

Today Barry Grantham, a senior lecturer in mathematics at Liverpool Hope university, said the ballot would be flawed unless the school publishes the results of all five boxes.

He said: “Otherwise, for example, you could say only 20% of parents were against the academy proposal.

“But it may well be that another 30% are undecided or want more information, meaning 50% of parents would have failed to say ‘yes, I want an academy’.”

The school has so far declined to comment to the ECHO on its plans.

But making the case to parents, it stated: “We can see very little to convince us that the additional freedoms and self control of finance would do anything but improve things considerably.”

Lynn Gatherer, 47, is among parents sceptical over the impact of the ballot.

She said: “I don’t see why it couldn’t be a simple for or against. It will be interesting to see how they evaluate the ballot. I think it should have been done straight away and widened to feeder primary schools.

“Also if parents are to make an educated decision, we need the full story and the stuff we received seems very one-sided.”